chaz720.net - journal

December 01, 2002

So after watching episodes 5-8 of the first season of The Sopranos (an activity upon which Joel and I have become hopelessly addicted) we figured we'd not leave the p's with the task of returning it to the weird blockbuster we never go to. We had rented it from that particular one as none of the other five I called had the disc we desired in. Strange, Joel mentioned, that a thing like this would be so hard to get our hands on, but they did only have one or two copies per store so I guess it was understandable.

On the way back we stopped at Denny's to get some grub and a few cups of coffee as an excuse to continue our perpetual conversation about life, the universe, and everything (no not the novel.) It was good to get a few cups of coffee because it was then I decided to say to hell with it and get on the road tonight. I figured there'd be a decent supply of traffic tomorrow morning as that's when pretty much everyone comes down and I like avoiding traffic. While I gathered my things, brushed my teeth, and washed my face, Joel took a taste of Metroid Prime and seemed to enjoy it enough. That done he took off and I went to load up my car.

The moment I walked outside I was startled at how clear the sky was and I was able to get a great view of the common northern constallations, orion, the dippers, cassiopia, and even a bright Venus. I opened my trunk and realized I was still heavy 5 road cones used at the football game friday and needed to get rid of those to make room in the trunk. I packed up my stuff and brought the road cones around the back of the house to put in the garage but the keycode on the back door was screwed up and wasn't unlocking the door so I had to walk back around and just bring the cones in through the house (mind you this is 2:30 in the morning and I'm trying not to wake anyone up.) Tip-toeing around and through the house carrying a bunch of road cones over my shoulder would have surely looked interesting had anyone seen the spectacle.

The cones taken care of, I set out, heat blasting away. I hop on 53 and turn the throttle over to the computer at around 65mph, kick back and turn up the radio to 22, a good cruising volume. I select my altenative disc and shuffle serves up some good songs, Amsterdam, Last Night, Make Yourself. I slide onto 290 and then 294, noticing how thoroughly lit all these highways are in the Chicago area. It made it hard to follow the stars I was enjoying earlier. 80 rolls around and I curse the express I-pass lanes for being so long and inaccessible as I'd miss my exit, I make my first and only stop the entire trip waiting for the gate to go up.

Once on 57 and out of cook county the lights are no more and the sky opens up again. I bump the cruise control up to 75. I can see the moon as a distinctively 3d object rather than some fraction of a circle. The whole thing is lit ever so slightly and just under a quarter of it glowing bright white. I come up on Kankekee and another car decides the speed I'm going is just right and falls in behind me. We pass through the "tunnel" with the short spaced green posts on the center divider. It's fun to look at objects through these posts as they go by, it looks like everything is sped up, or slowed down, or something, I really can't decide which. My friend stays right with me without another car in sight for about 30 miles, never changing his position relative to me, eventually he got off at some no name town, presumably to get some gas.

At this point the alternative disc wears out it's welcome. I love the song Warning Sign as much as the next guy but I found it was putting me to sleep. I flip to the hiphop disc and on comes J5 with Concrete Schoolyard, I turn up the stereo to 28 to get the 12s kickin' and suddenly I feel awake as I was this afternoon. Some Outkast, Roots, and Tribe come on and I still struggle to get over how cool the moon looks.

I'm getting close to school now and this guy comes up in the left lane like he's going to pass me but when he gets even starts kinda going in fits and starts, passing then dropping back and passing and dropping back and so I just slow down and let him go away from me. He did this to another car in front of me and then got in front of it and slowed down to about 70. I went by them both going my usual 75 and he started doing it to me again. I gave up and decided 65 was fast enough but apparently the conclusion was mutual and he slowed to continue screwing with me. As luck would have it, right before I was about to get off on 74 a car flies up behind the both of us, notices this guy acting like a jackass, and promptly lights up like a christmas tree and pulls him over. I've never been happier to see red and blue lights behind me, what a retard that guy was.

A short drive through town and here I am, I hope you enjoyed my last four hours as much as I did.

December 05, 2002

My name is Jonas, I'm carrying the wheel. Thanks for all you've shown us, but this is how we feel. Come sit next to me, pour yourself some tea. Just like grandma made, when we couldn't find sleep. Things were better then, once but never again. We've all left the den, let me tell you 'bout it. The choo-choo train left right on time. A ticket costs only your mind. The driver said, 'Hey man, we go all the way'. Of course we were willing to pay. My name is Wepeel, I gotta box full of your toys. They're fresh out of batteries, but they're still makin' noise (makin' noise) Tell me what to do. Now the tank is dry. Now this wheel is flat. And you know what else? Guess what I received in the mail today. Words of deep concern from my little brother. The building's not going as he planned. The foreman has injured his hand. The dozer will not clear a path. The driver swears he learned his math. The workers are going home.

Man, getting back into the swing of school is prooving to be very difficult. Even as I write I'm putting off cs173 homework. But then really that class is in a whole other category of it's own. Luckily I'm not getting swamped or hit with tests or anything right off the bat coming back. I have a test on Monday and really that's it until finals. I have three finals and a take home test. The only final that bothers me is ece229. As all ece tests it could either be very reasonable, or (if the second midterm is any indication) more of a test of the professors' ability to write problems that are as obscure and confusing as possible and yet still technically pertain to the topics we've covered.

I've decided to cut back on the caffine. Not the coffee in the morning, or if I go out to eat so much, or if I need it to get some assignment done, but just the idle caffine I found myself drinking all the time. Hey, guess what, if there's cold sodas in the fridge it makes it very convenient to just drink that when you want something. So now I just stop buying soda and I've found myself drinking a lot more water. Any time I'm thirsty I just go grab one of my water bottles from my fridge and drink that. Yesterday I drank something like 6 liters of water, it's incredible cause I don't miss the soda.

I finally handed in my advising sheet thing... maybe I'll get an advising hold maybe I won't... I don't really care. Pretty much if you have a 3.5 or better they let you go your own way. They're more reasonable down there then I make them out to be at times. Another interesting note on school. I'm aparently a member of the alumni association now, I get a free 18 month membership, which means it should run out about the time I graduate and actually become an alum.

By a random fluke I am going to the DMB concert in a couple weeks. I hadn't really made specific plans to go, but Hans has an extra ticket now, so I'll take it off his hands for him. It should be a really good show.

Curse Wisconsin for falling apart against Wake Forest and costing the BigTen the challenge to the ACC. They looked like they couldn't care less at the end of the game, playing crappy defense and just waddling down the court whilst down by 8 with a minute and a half left to go. I'm sorry I had to cheer for such a sad team to win.

December 07, 2002

Here I lay, still and breathless. Just like always still I want some more. Mirrors sideways, who cares what's behind? Just like always, still your passenger. Chrome buttons, buckles and leather surfaces, these and other lucky witnesses now to calm me. This time won't you please drive faster. Roll the windows down, this cool night air is curious. Let the whole world look in, who cares who sees anything. I'm your passenger. I'm your passenger. Drop these down then put them on me. Nice cool seats there to cushion your knees. Now to calm me, take me around again. Don't pull over. This time won't you please drive faster. Roll the windows down, this cool night air is curious. Let the whole world look in, who cares who sees what tonight. Roll these misty windows down to catch my breath again. Then go, and go, and go, just drive home and back again. Here I lay, just like always. Don't let me go, take me to the edge.

Whenever I just feel like listening to loud angry music, Deftones never let me down.

After looking at the apartment I had in mind yesterday I think we learned more on the walk there than the actual showing itself. No I'm not going to bitch any more about location, anywhere in that area would not be a bad walk to the engineering quad or everitt lab (the main ece building) but rather that we walked through what felt like a forest of apartments. There is literally a 16 square block area up there that is nothing but apartments and leased houses, all of it within four blocks of the engineering quad. And I think that waiting a bit and looking around a little more rather than just signing up with one of the "big three" firms might really pay off. I suppose I can't complain about the price here because this aparment is huge and it is two feet from the quad, but I'd feel crappy about living two blocks further away in a smaller apartment paying the same or more than I could of because I hurried. The bottom line is that it's not as much of a rush to get the kind of place that hans and I are looking for, and we don't want to make it one.

I've got the hydrolics in the lego car working now and it's actually pretty cool. I ended up ditching the compressor idea I had cause it really just couldn't handle the load of lifting the car, at least not with any measurable speed. A pump works just fine anyways, pictures in the photos section.

Illinois defeats Arkansas 62-58 today in what was one of the ugliest basketball games of all time. Turnovers all over the place on both teams. They kept it interesting anyway (unlike a certain team from North Carolina that will remain nameless, hint: periwinkle) bringing our average margin of victory to back to about 30 points per game. Thus prooving once again that big ten basketball teams hate playing on the road, but are almost impossible to beat in their house (we've lost one home game since I've been going to school here) I hope it will be a good season for the big ten. Michigan State, Indiana, Penn State, and Minnesota should all have good seasons too.

December 17, 2002

He wakes up in the morning. Does his teeth, bite to eat, and he's rolling. Never changes a thing, the week ends the week begins. She thinks, we look at each other, wondering what the other is thinking, But we never say a thing. These crimes between us grow deeper. Take these chances, place them in a box until a quieter time. Lights down, you up and die. Goes to visit his mommy, she feeds him well. His concerns, he forgets them. And remembers being small, playing under the table and dreaming. Driving in on this highway, all these cars and upon the sidewalk, people in every direction. No words exchanged, no time to exchange. And all the little ants are marching, red and black, antennas waving. They all do it the same, They all do it the same way. Candyman tempting the thoughts of a sweet tooth tortured by the weight loss. Program cutting the corners. Loose end, loose end, cut, cut. On the fence, could not to offend. Cut, cut, cut, cut. Take these chances, place them in a box until a quieter time. Lights down, you up and die.

The Dave Matthews concert was excellent on Saturday. I've been doing little but study since that concert though, I figured I'd take a little break from it now.

I've taken one final so far, nres100, so that class and mcbio100 are done now and I have As in both of those. I'm not saying that that is much of an accomplishment, but rather affirming that I have not become mentally retarded over the last 4 months. Tonight I have my ece229 final (dum dum dum!) which I attended about 8 hours worth of review session for on Sunday, I studied some more this morning, and after this I'm going to compile my two pages of notes we get to bring to the exam. Much beyond that I feel like I know everything pretty well. Again that doesn't mean I'm necessarily going to do well that just means I know everything pretty well, how well I do depends greatly on how many of the questions on the test are printed in "magic eye form" where you have to stare at it until what they are asking for jumps out at you.

I hate those magic eye picture things I can never see those...

Tomorrow I don't have any finals but I will take that time to take my matse200 take-home final, and then with whatever is left of that day, study for cs173, for which I have a final on Thursday morning. After which I have nothing I have to do for an entire month, and the thought of that makes having all these tests not that big a deal. I can't even remember how I put up with the set up back in highschool, when winter break came before the first semester was over, and you had to start second semester the next week after finals. yuck. Then again I suppose a semester is a lot different thing from what it was back then.

Sadly, since the fourth season of the sopranos just ended a couple weeks ago, they don't have it out on dvd yet. That means I only have two more dvds left before I will have to wait to see more. :( Hans, being characteristically on top of things, has been attempting to download the episodes of the fourth season so hopefully we'll have most of it after the current well runs dry.

I now return to my regularly scheduled finals week.

December 23, 2002

I hear a voice from the back of the room. I hear a voice cry out, "we want something good." Well come on a little closer lemme see your face. Yeah come on a little closer by the front of the stage. I said come on a little closer I got something to say. Yeah come on a little closer wanna see your face. You see I met a devil named buena buena. And since I met the devil I ain't been the same, oh no. And I feel alright now I have to tell ya. I think it's time for me to finally introduce you to the buena buena buena buena good good girl. It's comin to me, yeah it's comin to me. Now I think I know what it is you need. I know some people wanna make a change, but I know how to make it go away.

ahhhh, as I fold my arms and slump back into my chair. Finally on break. The remainder of my finals went really well so there should be no surprises on the grade report. Now I get about a month to futz around before I have to start classes again, it comes much appreciated.

I drove Leandra and Eric to the airport this morning as they will be spending Christmas in New York and then return for the new year. I took the opportunity to drive my mom's new 2003 E class because we needed a big trunk as they had a bunch of stuff they were bringing with them. I much rather enjoyed that. However, it spoils me to drive that car and I should try to avoid it until I buy a new car out of school.

Supposedly HBO is reshowing the fourth season of the Sopranos this week (suspiciously convienent.) So Hans, Joel, and I will most likely gather to sit down and watch those. We are all caught up through that point and there's only one season left that we haven't seen.

Today Jen is having a get together for her 21st birthday out in Geneva so that is going to be my day today, other than that I don't have a whole lot planned for the next few weeks here and that feels good. Maybe we'll take a road trip somewhere, maybe we won't, who knows. Either way it will be great.

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