1/1/00 - 12:10 am Well... Happy New Year. I've been watching tv off and on all day looking for stories about Y2K and that only thing I've heard was that everything is running just fine. I went out with a friend and her son today for a while. I had an okay time, but it was difficult as usual. Came home from that and went over to one of her friends' houses to fix a computer. This is the same computer I thought I had fixed earlier in the week, but it turned out that I had just gotten lucky that time. The only problem with the computer ended up being a dusty CDROM drive. I had thought that might be the problem from the beginning, but checked everything else anyway... should have just cleaned the thing in the first place. Anyway... midnight has come and gone and I didn't go anywhere for it this year, not that I didn't want to mind you. They say that the person you're with at midnight on New Years will be "yours" in the coming year... which is one legend that I'm glad I don't believe in. Its never come true in the past anyways. As for my 1999... there were very few good moments and far too many bad ones, even some that I never envisioned. I'll do my best not to let my guard down like that in the new year.

1/3/00 - 3:11 am What a difference 24 hours makes. I'm finally back in Mo'town after what felt like an eternity at home in MD and I'm very glad to be here. Went over to a friend's house last night and scanned a few new pics for my page. Was hoping to do other stuff too but my headache kept getting worse so I just went home. Came home to an email from my cousin saying that she couldn't go to the beach with us. After all that I did to ensure that she was going, after making a trip to PA just to see her, and after getting all excited that someone I invited actually said yes... I was a bit let down. Okay, I'm lying, I am way more than just "let down." The fact that she was going was making me really happy, maybe a little too happy. Something so insignificant as that just should not have that kind of effect. I guess I should be thankful that she at least tried to go... it did make my time at home bearable. Now I don't know what I'm going to do...

1/6/00 - 12:40 am Life has been boring over the last few days. Work has been slow but good... tomorrow the dorms open and work will get busy again for a bit. Socially, things have been beyond slow. I keep asking people to do stuff but they're either too busy or too tired. Its funny how one of the people I keep asking says they've been too tired but they've been drunk several times in the past 4 days... and never at their house. Boy, I'm glad I have my job.

1/10/00 - 5:50 am Okay, this weekend sucked. Nothing bad happened... it was just extremely boring. I had thought that work would pick up a bit once students came back but I was wrong, it was rather dead. Made numerous attempts to find stuff to do but no one called me back. Now its almost 6 o'clock in the morning and I have class in two hours. I think I got two hours of sleep tonight but I'm not sure. Time for a shower.

1/12/00 - 1:49 am It was a good day until just a bit ago. I'm getting quite tired of talking/meeting people that stop talking to me after they see my picture or meet me in person. I have no illusions as to my appearance, and believe it or not I'm no fool for love either, but I do deserve at least a little honesty from people. I'm a nice guy, but even I have my limits. The nice guy routine will not last forever... there will be a final straw someday, and with every lie I'm told, or insult that's thrown my way, or betrayal that I'm subjected to, that day draws closer and closer. With all that's happened to me in the past six months I'm surprised that day hasn't already arrived.

1/17/00 - 2:32 am Well... the first week of class is over with and so is this weekend. Classes went well and I think I'm going to enjoy my schedule this semester. This weekend went as expected... nothing to do, no one to do anything with. I did have an hour or so of salvation with a friend when we went and shot some pool... but that was about it. I don't have any classes on Monday or Tuesday but thankfully I'll have work. Hrm... so much to say, so little time...

1/20/00 - 1:28 am Hrm... I've only had one day of class this week and I'm already beat. I've completely exhausted my list of people to ask to the beach with no luck... which isn't surprising. I've also exhausted my list of people to ask to do stuff with on the weekends... also with no luck. I did get a call from a friend tonight and we chatted for a bit. I don't get to see or talk to her as much as I'd like to so just having her call me is a treat. Oh well... time for bed... long day tomorrow and the clock is ticking...

1/26/00 - 12:07 am Good lord am I ever sick. I woke up Saturday morning feeling like I swallowed a handful of tacks and had a hard time eating anything solid all day. The days since then have only shown a slight improvement and now I have a painful cough and sore throat. Classes and work are going fairly well considering how sick I am. And then there's that one bright spot... but I'm not saying anything about that...

1/31/00 - 1:41 am Hot damn was that ever a great weekend or what!! Uhm... or what would be the correct response. It was a weekend full of sitting by the phone, studying, watching tv, and allowing others to get my hopes up about various things. This week is going to be very busy, and it starts with a test in just over 6 hours. Hrm... I should probably get to bed.

2/6/00 - 10:37 pm Well... last week was pretty easy. Had one test which I did okay on, and I had three classes cancelled. Of course this week I have up to four tests and half of a program to do... so I guess it balances out. My weekend was okay for a change. I didn't get drunk or even go out anywhere... just got to hang out with some friends. Saturday was a bit of a strange day eventhough nothing bad happened... I had a feeling all day that something bad was going to happen. There's more to it than that, but its hard to explain. Nothing bad happened to me or anyone that I know... that I know of anyway, so I'm hoping the feeling was wrong. Okay... bed time...

2/15/00 - 12:26 am The dreaded V-day is finally over and boy was it ever a long one. The one test I had today went okay I think... would have gone better if it happened last Friday like it was supposed to. Nothing terribly annoying happened today either... only the usual sickening displays of "affection" seem to accompany this day. Drove past the flower shop this afternoon and the line was out the door, every one of them a guy. I dunno... I found it funny. I got a call from someone about a half hour ago that I never expected to hear from... especially not at midnight on V-day. Now that I think about it, I think I should have talked to them a bit longer... stupid me. I'll have to try to fix that later this week. Well... time for bed...

2/27/00 - 10:48 pm Geez... its been a long time since I've updated this thing hasn't it. I guess I'll go all the way back to last weekend when I went home. It was a very full and fairly happy weekend. Friday night was uneventful, which dind't bother me at all since I had been up since 6:30 am and drove for over 2 hours in shity weather. Saturday was a very long but fairly good day. I finally delivered my friend's computer to her then went to a computer show with another friend and her b/f. Her and I ended up going to see The Whole Nine Yards that night... a pretty good movie, especially if you like Bruce Willis. There were a couple times on Saturday when I wanted to twist a few heads off, and a couple times when I fibbed to people... but all in all it was a good day. Sunday was fairly uneventful, didn't do much but drive back here. As for last week... classes really didn't go too well, work was really boring for once, and that whole social thing got more confusing. This weekend did go fairly well however. I didn't do a damn thing on Saturday or Sunday, but Friday night was a lot of fun. I managed to go out a do a little drinking and pool playing with some friends. Finally killed off some of the weaker braincells, but not nearly enough. This week should be okay... I don't have any tests or programs due for once. Nothing else to report.

3/7/00 - 1:18 am Too much shit going on right now. Classes are starting to kill me... too much homework, too many inane programs, and at least one professor that refuses to let you write programs the way you've learned. This past weekend wasn't too bad, and today would have been real good if I hadn't of missed every class because of some strange stomach thing and a bad headache. I did get to go to BW3's with some co-workers so that made me happy. Thank goodness for work. This weekend should be good... I hope.

3/10/00 - 4:18 am Okay this week has had its ups and downs... and its either about to go way up... or way down. I got my midterms this week, which didn't make me happy since I shouldn't have gotten midterms in any classes. I know why I got them, and in reality I don't really have those grades, but it still doesn't make you feel good to get midterms, deserved or not. I also got charged an extra $50 on my phone bill for making 95 "directory assistance" calls last month. That's 50 cents a call, and over 3 calls per day. Needless to say, I didn't make that many calls... I didn't make any actually. I called and got it taken care of, but I still didn't like seeing it. Work has gone very well so far this week. I started out with something like 13 calls and now I'm down to zero. Now the scary thing... I'm doing something tonight... something that has me scared. Its something I've done before but its never set off those little warning bells in my head like it is this time. Optimistically, it should be a good thing. Pessimistically, I'm being set-up and the worst will happen. Realistically, it is exactly what it is and it will end like it always has before. Guess we'll just have to wait and see.

3/19/00 - 11:54 pm Hrm... lots of time has passed since the last update and a lot has happened. That thing that I mentioned in my last update never happened, as expected I might add. Company came up last weekend and it was pretty enjoyable. Went to see a good movie, had a good dinner at a nice place, and drank a little. Of course no one that I invited over showed up, but I was expecting that too. My actual birthday came off with way too many people knowing it was my 25th... all thanks to a certain someone that decided to email everyone I work with. I'll have to get my revenge on her b-day. Being 25 feels a lot different than being 24... don't ask me why. The rest of my week really really sucked, all because of my classes for next semester. I was hoping to graduate next fall, but then that went down the tubes. Then I figured next spring would be it, and now that doesn't look good because the school turned on something in the registration process that prevents me from signing up without getting special permission... which is going to suck. Once again... thank goodness for work!! I really have no idea how this week is going to go. If I manage to get into my classes then it will be okay... until Friday when I go home for Spring Break.

3/24/00 - 1:28 pm So many things have happened and not happened this week its hard to know where to start. I am still not registered for classes next semester, and it looks like I won't be for quite a while. My beach trip... first something happens and I'm less excited about going, then something else happens and I'm a little more excited again, then something else happens and sucks all the excitement out of it again. Then I find out that a friend has lost her job and now I'm worried about her. The icing on the cake of course is this weekend... a weekend I have no desire to deal with. I'm going home for the weekend but don't know why.. there is too much stress and pain and too little happiness at home to justify a trip. On the brighter side... it looks like I'll have lots of work to do this summer :)

3/30/00 - 2:16 am Okay, my weekend home went by without too many problems. Had a couple of good meals, one with a good friend, and saw a good movie. I didn't get to do what I wanted to on Friday, but that was kinda expected. For me being put in a horrid mood 30 minutes after getting home on Friday, the weekend in general wasn't too bad. Came back here on Monday and things have been fairly boring since. The town is dead and work is even more dead... that's the price for having a job that depends on students for business. I do need at least one drunken night before classes start back up. Oh, and the bright spots for this update, two people I invited to the beach are going and someone isn't engaged... yet ;) That's it for now.

4/4/00 - 1:16 am Well, the weekend didn't go too badly. Friday and Saturday were a bit boring but Sunday night was fun... watched the WWF PPV over at someone's house and got drunk :) The PPV wasn't really all that good... which seems to be the opinion of many people. Today was quite stressful... slept through one class and still haven't been allowed to register for classes for next semester. I have an appointment with my advisor tomorrow so hopefully it will be cleared up by then. Went out to eat tonight with a couple friends... had some damn good country fried steak...mmmm. Time for bed :)

4/9/00 - 10:40 pm Okay, can someone please tell me why it was snowing today? Here it is, a week into April, and its snowing... and it was sunny and 70 degrees just a few days ago. Anyway, things did not go too well last week or this weekend. The classes thing is still causing problems... its basically down to me begging each professor to get into each class. Then there was this weekend, which started poorly and only seemed to get worse. The only good thing that happened was that two people I asked to go to the beach are actually going.

4/16/00 - 9:58 pm Hrm... it was just one of those weekends where so many things piss you off. Friday was not a bad day, pretty good actually. Work went fine, but one of my classes pissed me off. It was the class after a test, and most people expect to get their tests back... but what does my teacher decide to do... cancel class so we can go eat at a department brunch and not give us our tests back. Friday evening did make things all better though... went out with a friend and got so drunk that the hangover I had Saturday morning was more than justified. Funny thing, we spent most of the evening drinking with two girls that stopped us outside of our first bar. The funny thing is that one of these girls was someone I have seen at just about every home football game... and wanted since the first time I saw her. Anyway, the evening ended with the two of them kinda disappearing without warning, and the two of us stumbling home by 10:30 pm. Saturday was spent recovering and not doing a damn thing. Today I did a little class work and went to see "Rules of Engagement" with a friend. It was a pretty good movie... a little slow in parts but the ending was good. Stopped by at work for a few to pick something up and checked the voicemail. Its seems as if some students have decided to make leaving obscene messages a regular weekend event. I think part of my tomorrow is going to be spent tracking some people down :)

4/17/00 - 12:13 am STUPID ME FOR ACTUALLY THINKING THIS WEEKEND WAS A GOOD ONE!!! I UPDATED THIS THING LESS THAN TWO HOURS AGO AND IT LOOKS LIKE I SPOKE WAY TOO FUCKING SOON!!!

4/21/00 - 3:06 am Well, my short week is over and my long weekend begins. We did a bunch of interviews for next year this week and I think I'm going to like all of my future co-workers. Felt kinda weird to be the one giving the interview, but it was a good weird. Among the many little things that are bothering me, the trip to the beach may actually be the biggest. I never thought it would be this hard to find people to go. It looks like there will only be seven people going down... which is only a half full house... which probably also means its the last year for this house and maybe even the trip. Not too sure what's up for this weekend... would like to do something local. I was half tempted to go home this weekend since the parents are gone, but figured that there is more here to do.

4/27/00 - 11:03 pm Its Dead Week here at school and it pretty much feels like it. I'm glad that this semester is almost over as far as classes and work go, but I don't want it to be over for other reasons. The next few weekends look like they could be pretty busy for me, which is a good thing I guess. This weekend I could be doing some birthday stuff and/or going to see a movie. Next weekend I don't have anything to do but I'm sure something will come up. The following weekend is a tough one... I could go home for a friend's birthday or stay here and go to a graduation party that may end up pissing me off. Of course I have to go home the following weekend anyway, so going home two weekends in a row isn't exactly something I want to do. Hrm... nothing else too interesting, as if what I just wrote was interesting. I am thinking of adding a few new sections to my page. Maybe a work section if I can get some pics, and a section for all of my secrets ;) Okay, last day of classes tomorrow... time for bed.

5/3/00 - 2:33 am Okay, time for my first drunken update in a while. The last couple of days have been interesting, but not necessarily in a good way. The weekend was pretty boring, even the PPV on Sunday wasn't as good as I was hoping it would be. Went out Monday evening to celebrate a friend's 21st birthday and ended up seeing someone I've been wanting to hang out with for over a year. It was one of those unpleasant and awkward surprises... especially since one of the people she was with was her ex. Tonight I got a call from yet another person that I've wanted to hang out with. I haven't talked to her in months and then get a call out of the blue. She said that she suddenly realized that it was finals week and we've gone yet another five months without talking. We ended up down at BW3's having a few beers. Her new boyfriend ended up appearing and kinda trashed the whole "catching up" thing, but I still managed to have a little fun. So in the past two days I've talked to two of the people on The List that I seldom get to talk to, and I guess I broke even in the happiness department. Tomorrow is a study day before my finals on Thursday, but after that its hopefully a couple weeks of relaxation and no stress before things start again. Oh well, maybe I'll get lucky.

5/5/00 - 12:09 am Okay, I'm getting real tired of doing fine in classes throughout the semester only to screw things up on the final that's worth 40% of my grade!!! My first final of the day was fine, but it was worth as much as the other tests and only covered stuff since the last test. My second final was worth 40% of my grade... and since I know that I didn't do well on it, that could screw my grade. Not only that, but it was so different from the other tests that over half the class was still there with only 30 minutes left!! On the bright side, the semester is over and I went out for a little drinking tonight. I'm hoping for more of the same tomorrow....

5/10/00 - 2:42 am Well, its been a pretty good few days. Helped a friend move into her new house on Saturday... and of all the houses in this town, it just had to be one of my ex's house's. Guess that's another irony for me. Spent the rest of Saturday getting very drunk at a graduation party and having a pretty good time. Had a rather embarrassing experience while I was there though, involving a slightly underage redhead. Don't worry, nothing illegal or anything... although I did want to go to confessional the following morning. Sunday was pretty good considering my Saturday. Monday was my first day of summer work and all I did was check wiring in one of the dorms. Not really exciting but I didn't mind it too much. Today was an off day much to my disappointment, but tomorrow its back to work :)

5/13/00 - 2:47 am Drunk... so very very drunk. It has been a long but good day. Work was very hot today and I was dead tired when I got home, but I managed to gather the strength to go out with someone from The List. Me, her, and her b/f went to BW3's for a while and had a few beers. After her b/f left we went down to the Met for a few before heading down to a club to watch a band. While we were walking between places she talked about the "fairy tale" that she was looking for and it made me kinda sad. The guy she is with now is really nice and a lot of fun, but he isn't the one (by her own admission) that completes her "fairy tale." Funny thing is that I never thought that she would ever want anything even close to what I think of as a "fairy tale." She's independent and very strong willed, not the type that wants something permanent... but from what she said tonight, that's what she wants. Of course, she's on The List so she's as close to prefect as perfect can be, and if given the chance I know I could complete her "fairy tale." Of course we also know that since she is on The List, I will never even come close to getting that chance. Anyway, we went to see a very interesting band at a local club and got very messed up. We left the club and I hung around until her b/f showed up to take her home. As drunk as I am now and as hungover as I think I'll be tomorrow, I have a graduation party to go to and she said she's coming with me :) I'll believe it when I see her there.

5/13/00 - 11:54 pm Whoa... I was drunk enough last night to forget to upload last night's update... wonder if I'll remember it tonight. Got up today and felt pretty okay given last night's festivities. Called my friend and confirmed that she was coming with me to that graduation party and then did a few chores. Made it to the party, called my friend to give her directions, and waited. It wasn't a surprise when she paged me and told me that she wasn't coming when I called her back. Was I surprised... of course not. She said she wasn't feeling well, and as much as I'd like to believe that, I'll be realistic and assume it was something else. So I spent the rest of the evening drinking my vodka and tequila, and eating my beef jerky... all three of which I was quite popular for bringing :) Oh, before I forget... I must quote a friend about a couple of the females that were at the party... "Jesus Tits!!" Asked myself more than once tonight "what the hell is she doing with him" about at least two couples. After I got back here I got a call from a friend saying her computer wasn't working... the computer I built for her. Apparently they had a thunderstorm today and her modem got fried. She sounded pretty upset the whole time and I felt bad because it felt like my fault. After I got off the phone with her I got a call from one of my internet friends. She's decided that the college life isn't for her and that what she really wants right now is a baby. After absorbing that bit of news, we talked a while more about nothing in particular. So... that's what my day was like... no real surprises.

5/19/00 - 12:31 am Its been a good but long week full of many hours of dirty and dusty work. But enough about that.... I'm off to the BEACH!!! No updates until at least 5/28.


The section below consists of thoughts written while I was on vacation in NC.

5/20/00 - 11:52 pm Well, I'm here... after 7 hours of driving with only a five minute bathroom break. The trip went very quickly except for the last 12 miles in Virginia. It took us about an hour to drive those 12 miles because of an accident. We are all here though, all seven of us. I still feel bad because there are only seven people here... after asking 16 people myself if they wanted to come its a bit disheartening that we only have seven. Anyway, we do have a good group even if it is a bit small.

5/22/00 - 1:45 am Ahh... it feels good to play some drinking games again... nuff said.

5/22/00 - 11:46 pm Its been an ugly couple of days here weather-wise and it has taken its toll on the area. A section of road was washed away just at the end of our road and caused my short 15 minute trip for gas to turn into a long 45 minutes trip. Made the gang a little late for our usual trip to Howard's but it was okay. The food at Howard's was excellent as always, but the service kinda annoyed me. Our waitress was great until she decided to divide up our check into 4 checks... 3 with two people and 1 with one person. Apparently it was obvious who the single person was. Then there was the girl that rang us up. She tried to charge me $96.99 for a $15.00 meal... lets just say I've seen sharper ping pong balls. The trip back was a bit wet... poured down rain most of the way. Lets hope tomorrow is dryer.

5/24/00 - 12:20 am Finally, a sunny day!! Went swimming, got some sun, played some miniature golf, and drank a little today. Sadly, this was the last day for two of our people. They leave tomorrow for home and work the next day. The next time I see them (assuming I ever see them again) they'll be married... lucky bastards.

5/25/00 - 12:30 am The house is a lot emptier now. Two of our people left today and I think the remainder of the house would have rather had them stay. Nothing much else happened today.

5/25/00 - 11:32 pm It was a beautiful day today until around 3pm when yet another storm rolled in. Didn't do anything tonight but cook stir-fry and watch a hockey game. I have been thinking about someone a lot in the past three days, pretty much wishing she was here. I don't know what I'm going to do about that though, it would mean taking a big chance and maybe being someone I'm not.

5/26/00 - 10:38 pm Well, I'm all packed up and ready to head home at 8am tomorrow. It was a pretty nice day today, sunny and not too hot. Didn't do much of anything again but lay around and read my book in the hammock. Now its time to get back to Mo'town. I'm hoping I'll have something good waiting for me. Until next year...


5/29/00 - 10:06 pm Okay, I'm back. Got back yesterday and went out drinking almost immediately... it was a good night :)

6/4/00 - 10:41 pm Hrm... last week was kinda long and very hot with work and classes. Most of the grunt work seems to be done for now... at least the parts that involve working in hot dorms. This weekend had its moments. Got invited to a movie Friday night by a couple friends which made me happy. Went over to two other friends' house Saturday night, had a few beers and watched a little tv. Didn't do a damn thing today but go grocery shopping, watch tv, and do calculus. This week should be pretty good I think. There are a few issues/people at work that have me a bit worried... some people are not being told everything that they should and other things just don't feel right. Maybe its just me being paranoid... I like this job too much and I'm expecting something to go wrong.

6/6/00 - 10:03 pm What a long ass day. This morning was a fairly unpleasant morning... unpleasant enough that I couldn't make it to work until almost noon and didn't feel well enough to go to class. Work did go fairly well as usual eventhough the whole raise thing has got me worried. Went out to BW3's tonight with a few people. Had some good food and a few beers... enough beers to be in one of my contemplative moods. Just tried of dreaming at the moment. Speaking of dreams... I've been having some really weird dreams lately. I keep dreaming about people from my past... ex-girlfriends and former friends mostly. I guess that's my brain trying to remember the good ole days... stupid brain.

6/11/00 - 10:42 pm Well now... that was a pretty good end to a fairly bad weekend. I spent Friday night trying not to go to sleep too early after a really good dinner with some friends. Ended up going to bed around 11pm but not falling asleep until around 2am all because I kept thinking about someone that I talked to earlier that night. Spent Saturday thinking way too much about the same person and waiting for the phone to ring. Decided to do something about it today and just gave them a call. We went to see Mission Impossible 2 and then went to BW3's to have a few beers. It was a very interesting night... learned a lot of new things about this person, which is a good thing but also a bad thing. Guess we'll just have to wait and see....

6/19/00 - 11:01 pm Hrm... Friday went pretty well. Saturday had its moments, a couple good ones and one really really bad one. Sunday didn't go at all like it was supposed to. Today just blew. I can't wait for this damn class to be over.

6/25/00 - 11:36 pm Hey... that wasn't too shabby of a weekend. Friday was a surprisingly good day given that I had my third quiz of the week. Friday night was what made my day... no details about that though... not going to jinx anything. Saturday didn't go quite as I had hoped, but I still got to see a movie with some friends. Didn't do anything at all for most of today. I am really looking forward to getting this weekend over with, or at least I'm looking forward to Friday.

6/29/00 - 10:19 pm Tomorrow is it... the last day of calculus... the last day of the last math class I'll ever have to take. Yesterday was a pretty good day. Heard some pretty good results from some major case from the Supreme Court and most importantly, Elian Gonzalez is finally out of the country. I was tired of hearing about him a day after this all started, and I'm looking forward to never hearing his "Miami family's" never ending whining again. I can't wait for tomorrow to be over...

7/5/00 - 10:15 pm Okay, for those of you that haven't heard yet, my calculus test last Friday went poorly. Not only did it go poorly for me, but also for everyone else in the class. On the bright side, all the calculus crap I learned these past few weeks has been flushed from my brain by copious amounts of alcohol. My Saturday was a very good day right up until the end when I talked to one of my friends. She is having some problems right now with bad things kinda piling up on her and she called me for some advice. I helped her as much as I could that night and think I helped her a little. The same thing happened Sunday night and Monday night, which has me really worried. Tuesday was a very good day despite not being in Frederick with friends for the 4th as usual. I sorta helped a friend put together a computer... more like watched him put it together, but it was still fun. Then the friend that I've been talking to over the past few days called me and invited me over to her house for a friendly get together. It was a good night having a few beers with some good people. Now... today... today was the day when we got our raise at work and found out some new procedures for this upcoming year. Everything went fairly well except for the new "dress code" we are supposed to adhere to. Its "business casual" which means khakis and a shirt with a collar... no shorts or hats. I can understand wearing that while in the store talking to potential customers, but not when I'm doing my calls. As has been pointed out many many times... we are "student workers"... we don't get benefits, aren't allowed to work more than 37.5 hours a week, have 4 or more people crammed in a tiny office, and can most likely be replaced at will... we are not "professional workers" so why should we have to spend our money to dress like professionals when we are in another student's room? The really funny thing is that the shirts that we are supposed to wear for work, the ones that have what we are printed on them, haven't even been ordered yet. Orientation starts on the 10th and it seems to me that it would be much more professional to have us all wearing nice shirts that show what we are rather than all of us wearing something different. Guess we'll just have to see what happens.

7/9/00 - 9:40 pm Well kids... the lesson for this weekend was "if you're an adult mail with a 29'' inseam, good luck finding khakis." Spent too much time and money on clothes this weekend... all for something I shouldn't have to do. At least I did manage to get some sleep and got rid of that headache thing that was going on last week. The next three weeks ought to be interesting.

7/23/00 - 9:30 pm Great googly moogly, it has been quite a while since I've updated this thing hasn't it? Let's see, since my last update I've had an anniversary of sorts, remembered a birthday I wish I could have forgotten, survived two weeks of orientation and two weeks of "business casual" dress at work. Orientation has been going very well so far. The bosses seem to be happy with the amount of "consulting" we're doing and how well we're dealing with the parents. The new dress code hasn't bothered me all that much so far, but I probably would have dressed like this anyway for orientation, its the fact that I keep having to dress like this when class starts. Then we have the kiss-ass(es) at work. Some people feel it necessary to go above and beyond the casual dress code, kiss a little admin ass, and wear a tie every day. Then there is the person that keeps giving out their email address to certain incoming freshman. They are the only person working there that manages to do that... so no matter what they say, they are definitely "hitting" on customers. Guess we'll just have to wait and see what happens this week. On the social side of things... things sure are sucking right now.

7/30/00 - 3:50 am Its amazing how a fairly boring and unhappy day can turn into such a good night. Things pretty much sucked for most of the day... the one person I most wanted to hear from never called. Finally, around 10pm, a friend asked if I wanted to go downtown to listen to a band... I decided that I wasn't going to hear from that certain someone so I said yes. Well... about 10 minutes after that conversation, that certain someone called and said that they were going to be somewhere around 11:30pm and asked if I wanted to come. I did and I met my friends down at the pub, listened to a so-called "jazz band," and had a really good raspberry-wheat beer. After we parted ways and I met up with that certain someone and her friends at Gibbie's. After a few shots and a pitcher I was feelin' pretty happy and to make a long story short, nothing happened that made me upset of depressed. Anyone that truly knows me knows that I have a very adaptable and mutable personality, and that " the one" for me can come in many forms. Until recently, that certain someone I've mentioned hasn't been much more than a casual attraction. But after several in depth conversations, a few nights out drinking, and many hours spent just listening to her vent I know that she is definitely one of "the ones." Now, to bring myself back to reality, I haven't got a chance in hell with her. Even in my current intoxicated state, I have no illusions about my chances with her... if I actually thought I had any kind of shot with her she wouldn't be on The List now would she. Well... of to bed with me... maybe I'll get lucky and have a good dream.

8/8/00 - 11:04 pm Well, August is here and has started kinda slow so far. I'm on vacation right now from work and things are going a bit slow. Of course Monday is the beginning of the big rush... time to train some rookies and get the new policies for this year. Most of my days until Monday will be spent in MD unfortunately. Not really sure why I'm spending so many days at home, not much to do there anymore. I may end up coming back here on Friday for a little drinking with some friends... better that than being sober at home with the parents. Oh well.... we'll see.

8/15/00 - 11:28 pm Guess what kids... its crunch time. The days of mind-numbing boredom are gone for a while and have been replaced by training, last minute repairs, presentations, and dealing with some minor annoyances. We have four new guys at work and so far they seem to be fitting in and picking things up well. Of course, the only real training for our job is to be thrown into it. There are a few things about work this year that are bugging me, but I think some of it is the change to a new way of doing things. The old way was a little slow but straightforward. The new way adds more red tape and should speed the process up. I say "should" because it depends on all of the level working together and everyone in the levels being as qualified as the bosses think they are. Anyway, I am worried about at least one of my co-workers. They are under a lot of stress at the moment and that probably won't get better for a while. There isn't anything I or anyone can do to help them apart from find a team of qualified people to assist them... but that ain't gonna happen. The only real problem this week has been this one RA that can't accept "no" for an answer. I have talked to him at least 4 times on the phone, explained the situation to him 4 times, and all 4 times he said he understood and accepted that I'd let someone higher up the chain know that he was unhappy and would like his connection. Today, he confronted my boss after a presentation and basically bitched and moaned about how things were run. It took ten minutes to end the conversation and it didn't end to his satisfaction. People don't seem to understand the old saying "don't look a gift horse in the mouth." If you're getting a service for free, a service that in the consumer world is not readily available for home use and if is, costs at least $50 a month but probably more, you don't complain about it. To make things worse for this RA, we happened to pass his room today and he has a phone line strung from the room beside his into his room... basically using that person's phone line for internet access. There wouldn't be too much of a problem with this if it weren't for the fact that he used his power as an RA to get into someone else's room and use their phone line. He's only been here for about 2 weeks and he's already abusing his power. With any luck he won't be an RA for much longer. Hrm... I think that's it for now.

8/21/00 - 12:34 am Its been a very busy week here in Mo'town. I've spent the past four days working around 12 hours each day helping students get connected to the network and proving that in many cases, having a high school diploma only proves that you're just smart enough breathe and walk. I also got half of my new cable modem installed on Friday, the other half hopefully being finished soon. Not too much else for now I think. Classes start tomorrow and Live and Fuel will be here tomorrow night for a free concert.

8/31/00 - 11:42 pm Today was just one of them days. I woke up with a pretty nasty migraine and spent most of the morning in bed trying not to move. After finally getting rid of my headache, I get up and discover that my new cable modem service is down, which also seemed to screw up my computer bad enough that I had to reformat it again... for the forth time this week. After making it to work I went and did a couple of my calls. The first one went fine but the second one was a bit annoying. First, she wasn't there when I got there eventhough she knew I was coming. Second, she was wearing a sports bra... and while I like it when people are comfortable while I'm working in their rooms... a sports bra is a little too comfortable. Lastly, after I got her connected, she was kind of rude and rushed me out of the room. Then there was the fact that today was an ex's birthday and another anniversary of sorts for me. Of course this Saturday is the first home football game of the season and that should cheer me up a bit.

9/11/00 - 1:19 am Wow... its been a very quick two weeks. We won our first home game last weekend and I'm looking forward to this weekend's game against Maryland, not to mention the company I'll have for it. Work and classes have been going very well so far. I only have one class that is not what I expected... far more boring than what I had hoped for. Hrm... other stuff... Went to the WV Wine and Jazz Festival today. I'm not a big fan of wine but I did find a couple that I liked, even bought one. I got a breadmaker yesterday and made my first loaf tonight... and its mighty damn good if I do say so myself. Overall it was a pretty good weekend, which was surprising since my week was definitely an emotional downer. Anyway... off to bed.

9/17/00 - 10:32 pm Well, two home games down and five to go. It wasn't a bad weekend overall... went to the game, had some much needed company, and got to eat out two nights in a row. Unfortunately, I have not gotten much sleep this weekend. I've gone to bed at a good time but I've woken up 5 or 6 times every night. I'm not too sure why but I hope I get better sleep this week. As for other important stuff... I got the brush-off from yet another female. Seems I may have been one of a few guys she was talking to... but not the one she picked... as usual. I am getting a bit tired of all this... seeing the people that make me smile is having less and less of a positive affect on me. Oh well... time for another long week.

9/30/00 - 11:43 pm September went by fairly quickly with only a couple updates... it was a pretty busy month for me. I went home this weekend for a day... and a day was about all I could stand. The high point of my trip was having dinner with a friend... unfortunately, it was also one of the low points. We spent a lot of time talking about "the good-ole days" of high school. I dredged up more good and bad memories than I care to count... and all the feelings that went with them. A large part of me wants to go with some of those feelings and start again... but another part knows that it can't happen. Then I had to deal with the usual parent thing... its amazing how one of them just can't take a hint and leave well enough alone. My trip back was quick but I didn't get to go out tonight like I was hoping to.... gotta learn to stop that hoping thing. Well... got three tests this week... what a way to start a month.

10/10/00 - 11:10 pm Well... its been a pretty good week or so here in Mo'town. I had a great time on Saturday before, during, and after the football game. The game itself could have been better... but that's asking an awful lot of our team. Classes are going pretty well so far this semester... no mid-terms for me :) Work is good as always... we just got a new project that I'm looking forward to working on. We did have a bit of a scare when one of our co-workers decided to rupture his appendix. He's finally back to work after a week or two off... I still say he was faking it ;) Not much else to report really...

10/16/00 - 12:12 am Now THAT was a good weekend!! Went over to a friend's house Friday night, had a couple drinks, and watched a damn good movie. Sat around most of the day on Saturday until 7pm when I met a friend at BW3. Seven hours and four bars later we went our separate ways... both of us mighty drunk and pretty happy. Today I went to a movie with a friend. Its going to be hard to top this weekend but I might be able to do it next weekend for the game.

10/19/00 - 3:19 am Its one of those nights... I'm tired but I can't sleep... way too much on my mind. I keep thinking about this weekend and it's potential to be really good or really bad. That tiny part of me... located in one of my pinky toes I think... that still contains some optimism thinks this weekend will be a good one, if not perfect then at least good. The rest of me that's a realist knows better than that. This all started last weekend with that damn pinky toe of optimism and my horrible relationship radar. I get to spend the evening with this certain person and for a good part of the evening she talks about her life and guy problems. A lot of what she says feels like its directed at me... "I want a nice guy for once..." (that's me), "that will take care of me..." (still me), "that isn't possessive and will let me do my own thing..." (as long as I can do my own thing too), "that isn't tall..." (sounds like me), "and that isn't skinny..." (oh hells yeah). There was a lot more to our various conversations than just those phrases... but it was all the same idea. When we parted company I felt like I could have floated home... of course I was drunk at the time. When she called me at 4am to tell me she got home okay and how much fun she had it was almost the perfect end to the night. When she woke me up on Sunday to tell me how hungover she was and again how much fun she had I thought I was dreaming. Then my realism kicks in and starts telling me that my radar is all wrong. What she said wasn't directed at you, Wells, the male, it was directed at Wells, the friend that doesn't have a gender, the one she can tell anything to. My realism has a point... I've heard "I like you as a friend" and "you're too good of a friend" far too many times. Why take another chance when its only ever led to hurting good friendships. Now you're thinkin'... you need all the friends you can get... no sense scaring this one off. Hrm... Realism 2, Optimism 0. So now I don't know what to do. At least I have my job... I think I'd go nuts without it.

10/20/00 - 2:49 am Chalk up another one for realism. My second update in less than 24 hours and it seems that realism wins again over optimism. I went to bed early tonight... really early, like around 9pm... I don't know why I was so tired but I wanted to sleep. At 10pm my dad called with a computer problem... better him than mom. At 11pm the friend I talked about last night called to say that she couldn't go to the game with me... and that she probably wouldn't be able to go out Saturday night. I was prepared for this but that doesn't seem to comfort me much. So I tried to go back to sleep... no luck... got back up to write this.

10/27/00 - 2:35 am Nothin' but stress and a lot of sucky stuff in the last 7 days. Last weekend was pretty amazingly horrible. My friend couldn't go to the game, I didn't get drunk, we lost the game, hung out with my freshman year roommate and his fiance at the game, and my friend never called me back so we could go out Saturday night. Monday was really annoying when I tried to sign up for my one class next semester and it was already full. I did get in to it today, but it looks like I'll be in there with a lot of jocks and grad students. Then there was the paper due today that I won't even talk about. Then there's Adelphia and my wonderful internet service that's slower than a modem. Oh, and how can I forget the stupendously foolish email I just sent to someone... what the hell was I thinking. Again... the saving grace is work... maybe I'll get to yell at someone tomorrow.

11/7/00 - 12:28 am What a horribly boring weekend... a fitting end to a less than wonderful week. Last week started with me getting shot down by a single mom. When single mothers that are looking for a good man shoot ya down, you know you're in trouble. Then Thursday rolled around... I woke up felling a little ill but I wasn't worried until I got to class. I suffered through 75 minutes of class trying not to pass out. I left class and promptly puked in the bathroom... the first time in my life I've done that. Unfortunately, I had two tests that day and couldn't miss them. I made it through my tests and spent the rest of the day and night in bed. I was a lot better on Friday but still not feeling too well. Saturday I went to the game by myself and managed to stay until almost the end when I got fed up with how badly we suck. On the bright side, the head coach announced his retirement after the game... certainly made my day. This week is going to be very light as far as class work and I may decide to go home to MD on Friday... but I don't know if I can bring myself to.

11/13/00 - 1:20 am Surreal... that is the only was to describe my weekend. I went out and did a little much needed drinking Friday evening with some people. Saturday was the really interesting day. Just before heading out to a movie my phone rang. I recognized the name on the caller id but couldn't think why they'd be calling me. Well, as it turned out, it was the old gang from high school calling. Not just one of them mind you, but all five of them. Apparently they've been getting together for a couple months and playing Dungeons and Dragons of all things. I was told that it just wasn't the same without me ;) Anyway, I'm still a little stunned about hearing from them. Sunday was pretty boring as I spent a lot of it trying to get in touch with someone and confirm if they're coming to the game this weekend.

11/29/00 - 10:58 pm Its been a while since I've updated this thing and not much has happened really. I didn't have company for my last ever home football game but that wasn't much of a surprise. The game was good but way too cold. Thanksgiving break went pretty much as I had thought... very boring after the first couple days. Work is going fairly well... its been a busy week because of the break. Somehow the simple act of moving a computer seems to cause a lot of students problems... maybe not a lot... just the stupid ones. Hrm... not much else going on.

12/13/00 - 12:58 am Just when you think things are going to turn out alright you get screwed. I was on my way to a 3.33GPA for this semester... then I get fucked. All I had to do was get higher than a 68% on my final and I had a B in the class... I got an 84% but did I get my B... hells no, I got a D in the class!!! Long story short, the TA for the class lost some of my points and flat out screwed me out of others. I managed to grovel my way up to a C- but that just isn't good enough. I wrote a polite letter to my professor asking for a some consideration. There is just no way that when you get an A or a B on every test, quiz, and assignment that you end up with a C- for the class. And I still have two finals to go.

12/19/00 - 11:08 pm I've gotten up way too early for 4 of the last 6 days and it's really hurting me. My finals are over and I've spent the last two days doing some pretty interesting stuff at work. After I got home tonight I got a call from a friend asking if I'd like to go out to dinner with her, her boyfriend, and a couple other people to celebrate her birthday. I was starving and hadn't seen her in ages so I decided to brave the snow and ice and say yes. Between the time she called me and the time she arrived at the restaurant she had gotten engaged... we were wondering what was taking them so long getting there. It's weird because she's the first of my close friends to get engaged. The rest of dinner was both happy and sad, at least for me. Her and her fiance will most likely be moving away in a matter of months which means the number of times I will get to see her again are shrinking fast. It isn't like I hang out with her a lot or anything, it's just one more friend that I'll never see again. Anyway, I came home and gave another friend a call because I needed to hear a voice but she wasn't home so I paged her. It took her 2 hours but she called me back. She's still upset with me for an argument we had over Thanksgiving. Needless to say, our conversation was short and not only did it not help me, but it made things worse. Nf vs zl gevc ubzr sbe Kznf jnfa'g tbvat gb or fgerffshy rabhtu, abj bar bs gur gjb crbcyr V jnf ybbxvat sbejneq gb frrvat vf cvffrq ng zr. V jnagrq gb gryy ure jul V pbhyqa'g pbzr gb ure ubhfr sbe Gunaxftvivat onpx jura jr svefg nethrq nobhg vg. V gbyq ure gung V pbhyqa'g pbzr ohg fur gbbx vg nf V jbhyqa'g pbzr. Rkcynvavat jul gurer jnf n qvssrerapr jbhyq unir bayl znqr guvatf jbefr. Gjb crbcyr sebz ubzr vaivgrq bire sbe Gunaxftvivat naq gurl ner gur gjb crbcyr gung V fvzcyl pnaabg fcraq gung qnl jvgu, ng yrnfg abg nf guvatf fgnaq abj. Gur gjb crbcyr gung cebonoyl pner nobhg zr gur zbfg naq gung V pner nobhg gur zbfg ner gur gjb crbcyr V unir gur uneqrfg gvzr rira orvat nebhaq... lrg nabgure vebal bs zl yvsr. Naljnl, zl bar sevraq vf hcfrg jvgu zr sbe gur jebat ernfbaf ohg V pna'g gryy ure gung. Naq bs pbhefr fur unf n arj oblsevraq fb rira vs V qvq gryy ure gur gehgu vg jbhyq bayl znxr guvat ubeevoyl hapbzsbegnoyr. V'z whfg gverq bs rirelguvat V thrff, orra gung jnl sbe n ybat gvzr, naq jvgu gur rire vapernfvat varivgnovyvgl bs sevraqf trggvat zneevrq, ubcr sbe zr frrzf gb or fuevaxvat. Gung'f nabgure gbcvp... eryngvbafuvcf. V'z abg gnyxvat nobhg zr orvat va bar, gung'f n wbxr nyy ba vg'f bja, V'z gnyxvat nobhg bgure crbcyr'f. V yvxr yvfgravat gb bgure crbcyr jura gurl unir ceboyrzf, ohg V nz urnevat jnl gbb znal ceboyrzf yngryl. Fbzr crbcyr qba'g qrfreir gb or va n eryngvbafuvc, fbzr crbcyr qrfreir orggre barf, naq fbzr crbcyr fvzcyl fubhyq arire or va bar. V svaq jnl gbb zhpu ornhgl va fb znal crbcyr gung vg'f uneq gb frr gurz va n onq eryngvbafuvc. Yvxr gbavtug ng qvaare sbe vafgnapr, V jnf gur bayl bssvpvnyyl fvatyr crefba gurer ohg bar bgure crefba gurer ernyyl fubhyq or. Fur qrfreirf zhpu orggre guna ure pheerag oblsevraq. Lrf, V jvfu V pbhyq or gur fbyhgvba, ohg V'ir gevrq gung orsber jvgu ure naq tbg ynhturq ng. Naljnl, fur fgvyy qrfreirf orggre. Well, it's been a long update and I am finally tired enough to go to bed. I get trained for my semi-new job tomorrow and I still have some shopping to do... it's going to be a long day.